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Please Lift Strictly !!!

I can't stand going to the gym and seeing guys with horrible lifting form, usually brought on by the desire to handle heavier weights...either in an effort to look cool, or the misguided attempt to get bigger!

Putting aside the use of "controlled cheating," a real technique that when used properly can extend a set "beyond failure," cheating during your exercises is only taking the load OFF OF your target muscle and placing it onto your tendons and ligaments.

Please, if you want to get huge, lift with a complete range of motion, control the negative, and focus on the muscle you intend on working. If this means lowering your poundages a bit, than DO IT!!! Eventually, you will be back up to your former weights, and you'll be carrying a hell of alot more muscle.

Yes, these weightlifting "morons" are all over the place and I have come to the conclusion that the #1 reason that most people do not make the gains they wish is not because of genetics or a bad diet, as much as poor lifting form!

Another thing that encourages this terrible form is guys that are using steroids and lifting this way! Of course, when you're on gear you can grow regardless of your exercise form...when some of the teens see these guys growing while cheating their brains out, they figure thats the right way to go. Then of course when they don't grow they either quit or go on steroids too. SAD!

Case in point...yesterday I was about to begin training chest when this guy asked me to spot him on flat dumbell presses. I said "sure!"

Well, he grabs the 130s and asks that I help him up with the first rep. He lays down and we push the dumbells up...I knew there was a problem when I felt a huge bicep pump from helping him lift those dumbells.

Anyway, he proceeds to bring the dumbells down about 2 inches and screams as he pushes them back up. After about 3 of these pathetic reps he yells, "spot!" So I grab his shaking elbows and he gets 3 more 1-2 inch reps.

Instead of saying anything to him I decided to quietly teach him a lesson. I asked if I could work in with him on the bench and he agreed. I didn't even do a warmup set. I just grabbed the 150s and layed down. He was like, "do you need a spot?" I said, "nah, I got em."

I then proceeded to do 8 full range reps with a pause at the bottom and about a 15 second negative after the last rep. The look on his face was priceless as he said, " Um, that was my last set...I'm done here."

GP, what you said in your post about roids makes me wonder, because I did see a guy who was about 6'1", probably close to 22" arms if not that, and around 4% bodyfat or so, only saw him once in the gym. He was doing barbell curls with a modest weight, but lifting like a real jackass, and I was wondering does he lift like this all the damn time?

Prime candidate for roids useage, and probably a competitor because he was so big and ripped, so I figured he was just passing through for a competition (was a couple months ago in San Fran area). Unfortunately he was a bad example to alot of young small chinese guys in the gym, who instantly added about 20 pounds to everything they were doing, as well as alot of slop and girlish grunting.

A shame to see that kind of stuff!

You go with the 150s you bad man! I'm getting a little stronger, but no size for the last 3 weeks except a tad on my back

Yup, thats just what I mean Mudge! In fact, I'm sorry to say, but when I lived in California I trained alongside several pros, and a few had such poor form I could hardly believe my eyes. Yet, they were freaks. I always wondered how they could look if they lifted properly!

As for the 150s...I'm still trying to convince the owner of my gym to get some heavier ones!!!!

I have also seen footage of Lou Ferrigno etc, using short rep ranges for things like overhead presses, and I wondered if it was to better isolate only the delts and not use triceps so much? Since I notice at the end of pressing movements seems to be most taxing on my triceps... or is it simply to use heavier weights, or just slop or ? hmm